The Definitive review for Tomb raider: Definitive edition

In 2013,  Crystal Dynamics released Tomb Raider, a reboot of the legendary franchise. The game did very well and was one of the top games released in 2013. Now with next-gen consoles out and about, Tomb Raider got rereleased on Ps4 and Xbox one as Tomb Raider Definitive Edition. Is this upgrade worth a repurchase?

Definitive Changes

First off, Tomb Raider Definitive Edition looks gorgeous on next-gen. From the beautiful lighting, to the way Lara’s hair blows in the wind, this world has been constructed with great detail. The game looks better than ever, however, that’s not to say the original looked bad.

What’s also better is how good the main character Lara Croft looks. Her hair has way more detail than it originally did and so does her character model. You can see sweat roll down her arms when near fire, and the fear in her eyes when she’s being hunted by wolves. All of this not only makes the game look good, but it also feels real. Which made me care about Lara even more.

A Survivor Story

Tomb Raider’s story hasn’t changed at all, which is a good thing. You play as Lara Croft, a young archaeologist in search of the lost kingdom of Yamatai. When her ship crashes on the shores of a mysterious island, she is stranded and is forced to survive, trying to find her friends in order to escape.

This Tomb Raider story is less about finding treasure (though there’s still some of that) and more about survival and character development. Lara doesn’t start off shooting bad guys and being a badass, she starts out as an innocent young girl and transforms into a strong capable women who can take care of herself.

In most games, shooting your first bad guy is satisfying and rewarding, but in Tomb Raider, it’s a sad moment. When you see the look on Lara’s face when she kills someone for the first time, it’s heartbreaking.

The story is great but…

However, the one let down with the story is the side characters. Their storylines aren’t that interesting and are mostly forgettable. Same thing with the main villain of the game. They mostly just come off as stereotypes, and their dialogue can be cheesy at times. However, Tomb Raider‘s overall concept is a dark story full of tension and action that will keep you engaged all the way through. 

Gameplay

The gameplay of Tomb Raider has also remained the same. You’ll use your bow and guns to take down enemies, your climbing skills and climbing axe to solve puzzles and pass platforming sections. You can scavenge parts to upgrade and mod your weapons, and earn XP to make Lara stronger. All of this gives a great sense of progression in the game as you can feel Lara and her weapons getting more powerful over time.

You will also come by areas that are out of reach, and you can’t get to them until you upgrade your tools, making it fun and rewarding to go back and see what you missed. The game also has optional tombs that you can explore to earn more XP and upgrades for your equipment. These tombs are packed full of challenging yet fun puzzles where you need to use everything you’ve learned so far to solve them. These tombs are a fun distraction from the main path, and I had a blast unlocking their mysteries.

There are tons of collectables in the game, like notes and letters from Lara’s crew and from the people who live on the island. Also there are artifacts to collect, which you can examine up close to learn more about them. I searched left and right obsessively trying to find them all. There are a lot of reasons to explore the island after you complete the game, and it can probably take you 20-30 hours to see and do everything.

Multiplayer…?

Then there’s multiplayer which also hasn’t changed… unfortunately. It’s not that fun to play.  It is filled with bugs and the gameplay is also sluggish. Most people probably won’t touch it or notice it; however, this should not deteriorate the overall package. Tomb Raider’s main campaign is more than enough reason to purchase this game.  

The Final Verdict

If you have already played Tomb Raider, there isn’t much sense in paying $60 to play this again; just stick with the current gen version. But if you haven’t played Tomb Raider and own a next-gen console, you should definitely give this version of the game a look, as it’s worth every penny.